Ascension
by Arianna Sunrise
Summary: When Rini is captured at the Gates of Time, it is up to Elios to rescue her, but in order to do so, he must go to Ancient Greece and confront his past and an unknown betrayal that lead to his demise. You have to read to understand. This is RiniElios, bu
1. Culture Clash

Hi, I don't own Sailor Moon, and I don't own the Greek Gods. This story has some romance, but it is really more about Elios, whom I am calling by that name because Helios, the Sun God has a role in this, and because it will already be confusing enough with the priest Elios of the present and the Greek Elios of the past. My goal is to give Elios a past, and not just one where he is raised for the priesthood, but one where he is given the choice between that, and the lowest hell. If you have difficulty understanding this, please e-mail me, and if I have something wrong (mythology-wise) and you can prove it, don't be afraid to say something. Since I am working pretty hard on this story, I don't want to read flames, though I would love constructive criticism. By the by, if I don't actually say that the date or location is different, it has not changed. This gets a bit confusing when I bring in the teenage Elios.  
  
***  
  
~3000 A.D.~  
  
Mount Olympus  
  
Elios was astounded, positively astounded. He had never seen such a large or magnificent city as Olympia, where he had been born, and it was in this city that the woman he secretly loved lay, or perhaps very near it, as one could never tell with the gods, and they were at least a fraction of his problem. Even more of a problem was that, though he was in the right where, he was not in the right when! Indeed it would take much to find her, the girl who he had once called his maiden, since he had no access to the Gates of Time, and even more so since the Greek gods were still present in and guarded that time.   
  
Only one of the lines of the gods could pass through safely, and as surely as he was a priest, he was not related to any gods. Elios had once lived in the time that he needed to gain access to, but that mattered not, and the teenager who raced chariots illegally and who could make any woman fall head over heels would not know of or bother with the beauty that would finally cast a spell over him. When Elios had gone to his early grave after an accident, he had committed so many sins that his only way to repent was to become the dedicated priest of the Elysian Fields. Dying had been the best thing ever to happen to him, because he had given up his sinful ways to devote himself to his studies in his new and somewhat immortal life. Unfortunately, it didn't give him the right to travel back in time.  
  
Why, one might ask, was Lady Serenity, the crowned princess of Crystal Tokyo in ancient Greece? Quite simple really, on the way back from the past, she had been kidnapped in the Gates of Time by someone who was at least a demi-god or goddess. Now that he was restored back to his full powers, he could do quite a lot more than turn into a Pegasus and pray for the safety of Earth. In his weakened form, when Lady Serenity had first seen him, Elios had only looked like a wasted human, but now, his hair was back to its rich golden color, the change having been brought on only by his kidnapping and weakened powers. Though he still wore his priestly robes, he also wore a sword at his waist, and often a hooded cape that rather depicted where he was from with its glossy but ghastly black shade. Yet, for all his immortality and changed ways, he was still under the employ of Hades, and that meant that one slip-up would mean eternal damnation to Tartarus, because when the Priest of the Elysian Fields slips-up, people die, or their dreams are warped; it could also mean a revolt against Hades, which would most definitely land him in Tartarus, and unlike the other poor souls, he wouldn't be left alone.  
  
~446 B.C.~  
  
The House of an Elite Nobleman  
  
The young lady, who was actually sixteen-years-old and commonly known as Lady Serenity woke to complete and total darkness. The name Lady Serenity was nice, but she much preferred Serenity or Rini. Having been to the past three times, she was quite used to living as a normal teenager, with curfews and the like. Her light pink hair had become streaked with silver, and fell down her shoulders in waves so that they pooled around her feet, so she also often chose a fashion that her mother had used as a teen before her rebirth that simply meant pinning the ends of her hair to the buns, though she often wrapped some around the buns to make it still shorter. Of course, she was still the same Rini that she had been a few years ago, though more mature, and had continued to wear her hair in bunny ears, as most people called them. Back to the darkness though; her wine-colored eyes adjusted to the surrounding darkness, and she realized that her hair had been cut to her waist, and now hung in spiral-shaped curls with half of them tied up, out of her face. The outfit she wore was of cotton, or something along those lines at any rate, and the texture reminded her of Elios' robes, with a rippling effect in the chest instead of tassels, and a skirt as opposed to a tunic. There were no sleeves, instead, intricate golden bands acted as sleeves and a cinch, and many more gold bracelets adorned her arms. Many of the bracelets had crimson sapphires that matched her eyes, and both normal and pink diamonds in other places that matched her hair. The back of her dress was nearly non-existent until it reached her waist, though it was laced up to her mid-back, possibly to keep the wind from blowing it forward and exposing her body where it had best be covered. Her feet were bare, which she only realized when she stood up and felt the damp ground beneath her.   
  
Suddenly, light flooded the room, and she jumped backward to stay out of the light in case the person meant her harm. A young man walked in, and dropped his lantern. "By the Gods, they said you were dead!" With a jolt, she realized that the language he spoke was Greek, and that she could understand it perfectly well. "Dead! Me?" Then she realized that this language of Ancient Greek was actually very close to Lunarian, which certainly explained why she could understand it, but the fact that she had just spoken it shocked her. "Yes, you, someone found you on Mount Olympus, but no one knows who you are." The thought occurred to her to ask the year, or possibly where she was in the first place, but if this was near Mount Olympus, then she was in Greece. "What year is it? I seem to have misplaced it." The young man raised a quizzical eyebrow. "This would be the year, 446, are you truly all right? Really, everyone believed that you had long gone to the Purgatory, or perhaps the Elysian Fields, since you have the insignia of the bloodline of the moon goddess, Selene." Something had definitely gone wrong because she was in ancient Greece! "Well, a lot of people believe that I am a descendant of her's, but I have no real evidence, all of that lies with my mother, who is currently very far away. My name is Serenity, but many call me Lady Serenity." He bowed and beckoned for her to come forward. "Right this way, my lady, I am only a servant, but I am sure that my master will be able to help you.  
  
The Underworld  
  
A rather angry God of the Sun entered Hades' throne room and demanded; "What do you think you are doing?" Hades smirked. "Ah, Helios, so good to see you. What, may I ask, is the problem?" Helios shot him a look of pure hatred. "Hades, release her now! Else I shall have to speak with Zeus!" The God of the Underworld stood and chuckled pleasantly at his cousin's antics. "I dare say that it is about time that boy learnt his lesson, you don't want to put up with that kind of a boy, do you?" Already, Helios was feeling the young man's emotions. "Hades, you try my patience!" This god, however, was not in a bargaining mood. "No, I will not release her, our little Helen of Troy will, in the end, bring us the desired results, and he will be broken." Helios winced and turned away. "I do not need him broken, I need him strong!" Oh, but you won't get him, I will, and when I do, you will fall. "Do not worry, I won't hurt him too much, now be gone!"   
  
Heaven  
  
And then the furious sun god was standing in front of his stables, hoping that Selene would be back soon so that he could think this situation through while he guided his chariot across the sky. 


	2. Granted

Hey guys, I recently received a review from 'just a reader', and he/she has a good point, so I am going to explain some things. First, the Elios in the past is nothing like the Elios in the future, he was basically given back his life in exchange for giving up his old ways, but also, when past Elios meets present Serenity (Rini), he has already been sinful, and she helps a bit to change him. Elios has committed an unforgivable sin, though not on purpose, and when he dies, he needs to repent for it. Of course, it is a lot more complicated than that, and you will have to wait to see why I say that. Second, in order to use the character Helios, I needed to make him Elios so that the God of the Sun could be Elios, and it wouldn't be too confusing. Third, I know that I was very vague with the argument between Helios and Hades, but if I had been any more specific, the entire plotline would have been given away, and I can't do that this early in the story, it's only the first chapter after all!  
  
Last, I am going to list the Gods mentioned so far or to be mentioned in the next few chapters. I suppose that I will put lists like this up in the beginning of my chapters so that you can understand everything better.  
  
Hades- God of the Underworld (see the animated movie 'Hercules' for more in depth explanations)  
  
Helios- God of the Sun, merged with Apollo, the God of Light, who is commonly made into the God of the Sun by mistake, leads the chariot of the sun across the sky, is the father of the Oceanid Perse's children  
  
Selene- Goddess of the Moon and sister of Helios, she follows him with the chariot of the moon, and is in love with Endymoin, a shepherd (this will be explained better later, and no, she is not Serena, nor is he Darien, this is before their time) Artemis, tough she wears a moon symbol on her forehead, is actually the Goddess of the Hunt  
  
Eos- Goddess of the Dawn, she opens the gates of heaven for Helios, therefore the light coming out of the gates as they are opened actually initiate dawn  
  
Zeus- God of Thunder and the King of Gods, most people already know something about him, but many do not know of what a womanizer he is, nor that he married his sister (many of the Gods did the same)  
  
Next thing: The three hells  
  
Elysian Fields- Where all of the heroes and people who are very kind and charitable go  
  
Isles of the Blessed- Where most light sinners may repent for their sins (even though it was an accident, Elios did something really bad, so he didn't go here) and then go to the Elysian Fields  
  
Tartarus- This is where Megara went when she died in 'Hercules', it is a river of the dead, and it takes them downward into a pit whose myth is that if you dropped a really heavy anvil (anyone who can remember the right number, please tell me) into it, it would take nine or ten days to reach the bottom, it is where the really bad people go, Elios would have gone here except for the fact that Hades took pity on him and let him repent for his sin, though he is, at this point in time, being pushed into it since his choices are to either be a priest or go to Tartarus  
  
Let me think, what else do I need to clarify...? Oh yes, I absolutely love Elios, I mean no harm to him, but I really wanted to explain his past in an original way. If I forget to explain any mythological characters, check out Pantheon.org, which is an awesome website. Now, you may have thought this was just an announcement post, but it actually is also a new chapter post!  
  
***  
  
~446 B.C.~  
  
Race Course Near Mount Olympus  
  
Elios steered the team of unruly horses toward the finish line and cracked his whip. At the sound of the leather flying through the air, his horses sped up and he ended up claiming victory as usual. Accepting the drachmas that had tripled from his original bet, he took a moment to look each young noblewoman up and down before starting his horses toward his home near the base of Mount Olympus. He lived for racing and for women (fourteen years-old on), and who could really blame this nineteen-year-old? All the other young noblemen had the same attitude, so why couldn't he? Speaking of women, he'd been quite surprised to hear that his sister had been on a morning stroll when she found a young woman dead near their home. Thankfully, no one had an inkling of whom she was, which meant that no one from their city-state had been killed. The girl had apparently had no wounds to speak of, and looked to be in excellent health, but no one saw any sign of breathing, and so everyone had assumed that she was dead. Elios himself had not bothered to waste any time with this girl; he had nary a chance with her if she was dead.  
  
  
  
Elios' Father's home, Previously Called: The Home of a Nobleman  
  
After arriving in the stables, Elios unsaddled his horses and lead them into their stalls. Halfway to the house, he spotted Athene, his sister, and ran over to her. "Athene, what is going on here? Why is there no one in sight?" She glanced over toward him, and with a smile, explained. "The girl is very much alive, Elios, she woke earlier and said that her name was Lady Serenity. Everyone is excited because they believe that Selene saved her from Hades, I personally think that she may not have been breathing visibly, but physically, she was always alive." This intrigued him. "Lead the way." Athene did so, and was surprised to see a very beautiful young woman speaking delightedly with the curious servants while his father watched from the upstairs balcony with one eyebrow raised.  
  
Serenity answered each and every question she was presented with, though she had very many of her own, and noticed someone in the shadows, watching her with familiar amber eyes. Those eyes... Elios' eyes are exactly like them! Once all of the servants had cleared out, an older man came into the light. "Hello, Sir, I am truly sorry if I have imposed on you, I shall be on my way at once." Them man clucked his tongue. "Methinks that you have no place to go at all, please feel free to stay here, we would be most delighted to have you until you find your bearings." Not allowing herself to be rambunctious, Serenity smiled gratefully. "You would be right, and it is most gracious of you to offer your hospitality." He nodded once and turned away. "My children, Athene and Elios, should be of some assistance, if you find them, they can show you to the guest room." Had she just hallucinated, or did he say that he had a son named Elios? Serenity had to admit that she knew very little about the priest whom she had not seen for two years. "Thank you." Then, after the man left, she was left in silence for a moment. What had happened here? Her time-key was nowhere in sight, and the pink and silver crystals were unresponsive. Why oh why had she not taken Diana with her? The little kitten would have been very helpful at the moment. Suddenly, another person stepped out of the shadows, and she saw, to her surprise that it was Elios. Curiously, he had golden-blonde hair, and that he was not wearing his robes. It could have been sheer coincidence except for the fact that his eyes were exactly the same. "'Tis not very often that such a beauty appears in our backyard. I assume that you would be Lady Serenity?" It was he, as surely as the walls around her were solid, he was very much there, and in front of her, minus the horn. He took her hand and laced her fingers with with his, brushing his lips against each knuckle without breaking her gaze. He heartbeat thrummed in her ears. "I am she, and I assume that you are Elios?" A smile played across his lips, but she knew that, though this was Elios, it was nother Elios. Already, she could see what kind of a man he was: a gambler, a budding womanizer... time really does change everything. The Elios that she knew was sweet and gentle, and the Elios that she knew was the one that she had fallen in love with. Because of his status, the priest of the Elysian Fields could never have her, and nor could she have him.  
  
Heaven  
  
Helios and his sister were both grumbling about the situation with Hades as Eos came to fetch him for his ride. "I feel his emotions: he longs for her." Selene met his gaze. "And she longs for him." Eos cleared her throat. "If you two keep brooding like that, you'll end up more depressed than you are now." Still grumbling, Helios left in his chariot as Selene left by foot to visit her lover, Endymoin.  
  
~3000 A.D.~  
  
Elysian Fields  
  
Elios had been praying for nearly sixty hours before he received the flash of memory of his meeting with Lady Serenity in his old life. So his old self would know her! In fact, she had probably already met him as a nineteen-year-old! Why were his memories so fuzzy? That was the last thing that he could remember before dying, thee rest had possibly been... blocked? He couldn't even remember his death, but he had a feeling that Serenity had something to do with it, indirectly of course. He just had to go back, but how? Hades perhaps? It was possible that Hades would at least grant him that, though he had been bitter with him for a few thousand years now for no reason that he could think of. So he left the Elysian Fields and went in search of Hades.  
  
The Underworld  
  
"No." Elios was surprised; he had not thought that Hades would refuse him so immediately. "But, my lord..." Hades shook his head. "No, I'll not have you leaving for the past, you could alter it too much." Now, his only other option was to pray to the God whose name his parents had given him. Quite a ways from the throne room, Elios went down on his knees and prayed. "Helios, please, I need your aid, my liege refuses my appeal, can you not help me?" The God of the Underworld despised the God of the Sun for a reason that he could not rightly discern. Suddenly, light flooded the hallway, and he shot to his feet. A beam of pure golden energy whirled around him, creating a spiral of dust, and somewhere in the back of his mind, a thunderous but familiar voice said; "Granted." 


	3. Capture

Hi there, I have six new characters, one of whom is only mentioned in passing, but I still need to explain, or you'll get lost again. Anyway, I hope this helps you a bit more 'just a reader', and I would like to give a shout-out to LA2 and 'Budding Authoress', for the first, I don't mind if your review shows up four times, and for Budding Authoress, thanks for checking this story out, maybe you can help me out with it at school.  
  
Hypnos and Thanatos- Both of these characters are featured in 'Hercules', and are winged. A slight reference is made to the movie just because I liked the part where they're always saying that Hades won't like something when he finds out about it, and one of them, I forget which one, says something along the lines of "Not when, if." Hypnos translates as Sleep and Thanatos as Death, and they are the henchmen of Hades.  
  
Persephone- Hades' wife, he kidnapped her, and when Demeter made him let her go, he gave her a pomegranate that bound her to the underworld for as many months as seeds that she ate during the year... check out pantheon.org if you're interested, it is rather long and confusing. Basically, Persephone, like Hera, became very jealous when her husband favored another woman, and got rid of the other woman.  
  
Pegasus- He will be in the story later on. Pegasus often spends his time with Hercules, and when he is not with said hero, he is in the stables of Helios. The way I mention him though is in context with his character in Sailor Moon. That is another twist in the story that you will understand later, and if you're very curious, you can e-mail me to find out what I mean, but it would give away part of the story.  
  
Hera- Zeus' wife, she is the Goddess of Marriage. Hera is a very vengeful woman, and if one were to look up all of Zeus' affairs, they would find that Hera had them all punished, even if Zeus raped or bullied them.  
  
Athena- The daughter of Zeus and only Zeus, when Hera found out about her and the fact that Zeus had swallowed Metis to keep Athena's future son from dethroning him, she had her own son, Hepheastus, who then split open Zeus' head and let her out.  
  
~446 B.C.~  
  
The Underworld  
  
Hades paced around, knowing that if he did not act soon, his plans would fail quite miserably. Hypnos and Thanatos had done a fine job of bringing the girl to Greece, they had only failed in the fact that they had dropped her after receiving quite a scare from Helios, who had suddenly shone quite brightly and scorched them. "Hypnos, Thanatos! I have a job for you!" The two ran into the throne room and stood at attention. "I want you to watch Princess Serenity very closely. Once Elios has gotten close to her, you will bring her back here." Both brothers nodded mutely and left Hades immediately. If he didn't succeed, Helios would crush him, and it could also mean dire consequences from Zeus, who would be thoroughly miffed at him for bringing a mortal from the future into the present. She was beautiful, the princess that is, and he would not argue that point with Helios. Of course, he was presently tied at the hip to Persephone, but a few more days' time would mean that she was gone to visit her mother, and when the time came for him to meet Princess Serenity, he would allow himself to ignore the fact that he had a wife, since that was what most of the other gods did anyway.  
  
The Temple of Zeus  
  
Elios fell to his knees as he uncovered his eyes. After all those years of the gods being gone from the world, he was back in a place where they were revered. The statue of Zeus was directly in front of him, and he allowed himself to bow momentarily in gratitude. Then, he stood and walked outside. Helios shone brightly that day, and when he turned away from the sun, he heard a voice. "Elios, do not let your old self see you, and do not let your family see you." It came from the back of his mind, and he knew at once that it was the Helios of his time. "Of course I will not." Noticing his clothes for the first time, he saw that he wore a one-sleeved chiton with a golden hem that revealed his chest while it swept to the floor. Not bad, except for the part where he felt like he was wearing a dress. With a sigh, he began his descent down the mountainside.  
  
Mount Olympus  
  
Serenity and Athene had grown close in the past week, and Serenity had come to know Elios fairly well also. He raced chariots for drachmas, and went through girls like there was no tomorrow. For her, this was a stunning fact. Her sweet Pegasus had obviously changed in the few thousand years before she met him. Now, though, she was out alone, without any supervision. Worry and fear took over, how was she to get home? Serenity's brow furrowed with worry, and she vacantly sat down at the base of a tree, her fingers twisting through the flowers of ancient Greece. Soon, sleep came over her, and she dreamt of home, her family, and Elios.  
  
Not long after Serenity lay to rest, Elios, the priest, found her and went down his knee beside her. "My maiden, it has been far too long." He ran the backs of two fingers down her cheek reverently. She sighed softly and he, unable to hold back any longer, placed a gentle kiss on her lips and pulled a white rose of the Elysian Fields from his pocket to place on her breast, which her hand quickly snaked up to. Just as he was about to wake her, he heard a noise and knew that his past self was there. Even if he had woken her, he would not have been able to take her back to the future, nor would they have been able to survive. It was best that she stay with his past self. "Until then, my love." Her eyes fluttered open as he was leaving. "Elios?" The Elios of the past would be there quickly enough, so he had very little time to spare. "My maiden, I will be back for you, you have my word, but first I must find a way to get back to the future." He quickly pulled her to her feet and brushed his lips against her fingers. "At least I know that I am not alone." Elios smiled and began to say something more, but then he heard a noise and gave her a chaste kiss on the cheek before leaving her. "Meet me here when Selene is out!" He whispered in her ear.  
  
Serenity blushed crimson and glanced down at the rose white rose in her hand and noticed that gold was spreading down it from the tips, though it stopped after a minute or two. "Strange." She glanced upward finally and noticed Elios coming through the undergrowth. It was not the Elios whom she had just seen, but the noble youth whom she had come to know of late. "Serenity? What are you doing out here alone?" Taking his outstretched hand, she again marveled at how time could change someone so much. "I came out to... think for awhile, that is all."  
  
Nearby, Hypnos and Thanatos were exchanging confused glances. "Uh oh." Hypnos murmured, and Thanatos glanced at him. "I am a bit confused." Thanatos admitted. "He's from the future, Thanatos, and if he figures out how to get back there... Hades is not going to like this when he finds out." His brother thought for a moment. "Don't you mean if he finds out?" Hypnos groaned. "No way am I falling for that again, we have to tell him." The twins both groaned at that and flew back to the underworld.  
  
Heaven  
  
Selene stormed into the room and asked him; "Why do I sense two of the same person?" Helios rubbed his temple. "I didn't bring him here, I promise you that, but he's here to save her, so you should really be happy about that. The strange thing is, he isn't... divine, and I would have thought that he would be, but this does tell me that Hades' threat is larger than I thought." She nodded. "That is all fine and well, but Hades is going to notice him, and when he does, he will stop and nothing to destroy him." A slight smile appeared on his lips. "He may not be divine, but he is immortal, with that and my own protection, he should be fine, now I must be going." Helios took his job very seriously, and if he neglected his duty, he would grumble about it for days afterward.  
  
The Underworld  
  
"And who was stupid enough to let him through to this time in the first place? Why didn't you just kill him! Go now, and don't come back until the future Elios is dead! Actually, I have a better idea, bring him to me, and I will squeeze the information about the future from him." Thanatos and Hypnos dashed off to find the future Elios and dispose of him. Hades groaned; so the future Elios was not divine, perhaps this meant that he had succeeded, but what year had this Elios come from? Then he thought, what a stupid question, he's probably from the same year as Lady Serenity, and he's probably come to rescue her. Persephone entered the throne room. "Hades, what was all the yelling about?" She could never know of his plans, or she would tell Demeter, and then where would he be? "Nothing, Persephone, I'm just a little upset with Hypnos and Thanatos." Though she obviously didn't believe him, Persephone accepted this and left to resume whatever task she had been hard at work doing.  
  
The Base of Mount Olympus  
  
Serenity had been able to escape narrowly, her path being blocked by the past Elios as he asked her where she was going, but a diversion had been caused in the kitchen, and she had ducked out. The past Elios seemed to be very protective of her, perhaps even in the same way as the future Elios. Finally, she spotted him amongst the undergrowth, looking around thoughtfully. "Elios?" She whispered, and his gaze flicked toward her, a small smile flickering on his face. "Maiden." He acknowledged her, but something seemed a bit... wrong with him. "Are you quite all right?" Elios nodded, but he was on edge. "Of course." Taking her hand, he bestowed a lavish kiss upon the back of it, and she temporarily forgot her suspicions.  
  
Elios rounded the corner and heard whispering. He was supposed to be meeting Serenity about now, and he was wondering where she could possibly be. Once the view from around the rock formation was completely open to him, he just stood and gaped for a moment. Serenity was speaking with... him, but it wasn't him! The Elios she was sitting next to couldn't be the Elios of the past either, because the Elios of the past never dressed so lavishly. So this Elios must be an impersonator! He ran out and narrowed his eyes. "Maiden get away from him!" Serenity turned toward him with wide eyes and leapt away from the impersonator. "What... wait, what is going on here? Which one of you is the real Elios?" The impersonator jumped to his feet. "I am, of course." As if that were not enough of a giveaway already! "My maiden... you know me, I am simple, not so pompous as whomever that is over there." Serenity hesitated. "How am I to know which one of you is the real...you?" Before Elios could say anything, the impostor placed a kiss on her lips, from which she pulled away, then broke apart from him and lurched toward Elios. "Oh nice job Thanatos!" Strangely, the other Elios started arguing with himself. "Shut up Hypnos!" Suddenly, the impersonator lurched forward and clasped Serenity's wrist. "Fine, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. You come with us future boy, and we let the princess here go, but if you refuse, she goes to Styx, and Charon can deal with her." He knew that voice! "You're Hypnos and Thanatos! Let her go, or I'll see Hades about this!" His maiden looked extremely confused, then fearful as Thanatos and Hypnos pulled a dagger from out of nowhere and placed it at her throat. "How do you know Hades? He does not deal with simple mortals such as yourself." Blue and red lights danced around the two twins as they separated with Thanatos holding the dagger against Serenity's throat. "I am no more mortal than you are. It has been so for over three thousand years, thanks to Hades. Now let Lady Serenity go, or I will resort to a certain form of magic which you will find most unpleasant."   
  
Then, Hypnos was behind him, and he felt the blue flame of the henchman's whip against his skin. "We can go now, Thanatos." Elios struggled to work his hands free, and one did, so he spun around and pointed at Hypnos, causing a beam of light to wrap around the creature and make him howl in pain. Next, he pointed at the ground beneath Thanatos' feet, and a serpent slithered around his ankles. The henchman released Serenity, and he rushed over to her, the blue fire still curled around his wrist. "Are you all right?" Elios asked as he gathered her in his arms. "What is going on here? What does your immortality have to do with Hades?" Hating himself for not telling her sooner, he explained. "I doubt that we have time for the whole thing right now, but I made an awful mistake that landed me in Tartarus when I died, and Hades let me be the priest of the Elysian Fields instead." She opened her mouth to speak, but then a look of wild fear passed over her face as she looked past him, and he knew what was coming, so he pulled her to her knees with him and shut his eyes as purple energy swirled struck him in the back, scorching his chiton. "I can't transform here, Elios, the pink crystal won't respond and neither will the silver one." Serenity whispered, and he ran his fingers down her hair. "Being under Nehelenia's control greatly weakened my power, I can protect us both well enough for a little while." When she looked up, their eyes locked, and he felt an overwhelming tenderness wash over him, but it was coupled with a fierce protectiveness. "Elios, behind you!" She whispered, and he turned around, his arm coming up reflexively to protect Serenity. Both red and blue whips of flame encircled his arm, and the twins yanked him to his feet. "Any last words before we take you to Hades?" Elios nodded and glanced back at Serenity, suddenly remembering everything up to his death. "Make sure that my past self participates in the Olympian games, be careful, and remember that... I love you, no matter what. And please, don't cry when..." And then he was in the underworld, and the words died on his lips.  
  
Serenity felt tears come to her eyes, and then she dug her nails into her palms. "Elios!" His name tore from her throat, and she collapsed on the ground as sobs wracked her. "Damn you gods! Damn you for taking him away before I could tell him that I loved him!"  
  
Mount Olympus  
  
Unfortunately for the Princess of the Moon, a few of the gods heard her and wondered at her blasphemy. Athena and Hera were some of the few that heard her, and they most definitely were not pleased. "What have we done to warrant such a foul statement?" Hera wondered, and Athena shrugged. "I know not what we have done, but her blasphemy is punishable by death." As Athena prepared to dispose of the princess, Helios appeared near the two women. "You know not what you have done to warrant such harsh words, so I beg that you hear me out before you strike the princess." The Goddess of Wisdom nodded. "Go on." Serenity's life was on the line, and if she died, he would suffer as much as Elios. "Hades ordered the capture of the man that she loves, so she was within her rights to blame the Gods." Hera narrowed her eyes. "Why do you defend the unfortunate creature, what is she to you?" His mouth went dry, but he quickly responded. "Princess Serenity is not from this time, Hades brought her from the future, so she knows not of what she speaks." Unfortunately, the Goddess of Marriage was not about to give up so easily. "If that is your answer, I do not see why ignorance should keep me from striking the little wench." She brought up the image of the weeping princess and prepared to send a henchman to murder her. "Hera, please!" A cruel smile appeared on her lips. "You love her." Athena sighed and left the room. "Be nice, Hera." Helios groaned: this was the last thing he needed. "No, I do not." The goddess snapped, and a monster appeared behind Serenity. "Helios?"   
  
" Please, Hera, don't!" Then, the monster made a growling noise and Serenity turned around and shrieked. Terror for her seeped into his blood and he clenched his fists. "And you say that you don't love her." The creature lashed out at Serenity and caught her arm, drawing blood. "Hera, I don't love her, that, at least, is the truth, but I am linked to the man who does." Again the monster drew blood, this time across her stomach. "Really? How interesting, and what happens when I do this?" Her monster raked its claws down Serenity's leg. "Dammit, Hera!" Suddenly, white light washed over Princess Serenity, and the monster vanished. Immediately recognizing his sister, the slightly pale Helios took a seat, breathing heavily. Elios had seen it somehow, that is, the future Elios had seen it, and he was terrified for his maiden, or so he liked to call her. Hera narrowed her eyes. "Your sister?" He nodded. "Watch, and learn."  
  
Serenity gazed up at the moon, which was shining brightly at the moment, and distinctly saw a woman, or rather, a teenager like herself appear next to her. The woman smiled, and in the long gone memories of her mother's pictures from the Silver Millennium, she recognized her. "I... I know you, you look just like my mother!" The woman chuckled, and it sounded like a million sweet bells were ringing around her. "But of course you do, Serenity, I am your grandmother." 


	4. Selene

Okay, this chapter has a lot to do with Serenity (Rini) and her personal growth. Yes, this is the chapter where she finally falls for the Elios of the past, or rather, the chapter where she allows herself to love him. I mention a lot of gods in this chapter, and I will explain them well later, but for now, it will be generic. Keep in mind that most of the gods are somewhat related to each other.  
  
Ares- God of war, his helpers are Phobos and Demos  
  
Aphrodite- Goddess of Beauty, she despises her husband, Hepheastus  
  
Hermes- The messenger god, he is recognized for his speed  
  
Zeus- The god of the weather, he is the leader of all the Greek gods  
  
Gaia- The Earth  
  
Uranus- The sky  
  
Poseidon- God of the sea  
  
Chronos- Zeus' father  
  
Morpheus- God of dreams  
  
Demeter- Goddess of the Seasons, she is the mother of Persephone  
  
Hestia- Goddess of the hearth (home)  
  
Note: For 'just a reader', I have next to no information about Hypnos and Thanatos, she I modeled their characters after the ones in 'Hercules', and Hades is not going to be like 'that' Hades, so you shouldn't have too many nightmares.  
  
***  
  
Nothing could have prepared the Princess of the Earth and Moon for that. "Wh... what?" Selene smiled, and offered her hand to help Serenity to her feet. "Serenity was the first of several of my daughters, and that makes you my granddaughter. You are a demi-goddess, dear, and where would any goddess be without the man that she loves?" Serenity flushed and glanced downward, realizing that Elios could be down beneath her feet, and tears formed in her eyes. "But I don't understand, why are you here? What am I to you? I have studied the texts, most gods have no care for their descendants." The Goddess of the Moon sighed. "Serenity, you are in grave danger without your crystals, but I am afraid that only the God of Dreams could restore them to you now. They are lost, and Elios holds the last of the three. I wish that I could offer you my own, but unfortunately, it could kill me. Then again, you might find what you seek in the Elios of the past. Do not be afraid to fall, love is blind, and one cannot expect you to keep your feelings separated when they are in essence the same person." She blushed more deeply. "This really complicates things, are all of the scouts related to gods?"  
  
"But of course, Mars is the descendant of Ares, Venus is of Aphrodite, Mercury is of Hermes, Jupiter is of Zeus, your father is of Gaia quite naturally, Uranus is of Uranus quite naturally, Neptune is of Poseidon, Saturn is of Chronos, and Pluto is of Hades. All of your friends are related either directly or indirectly, and your father is distantly related to your mother." Once again, the princess' blush deepened. "And Elios and the Asteroids? Am I related to Elios, he's not my cousin or anything, is he?" Selene shook her head. "Oh goodness, no. Elios is a descendant of Morpheus, but that really makes him a very distant cousin, his divine heritage goes back too far it to influence you. As for your question, Juno is related to Hera, Ceres to Demeter, and actually Hades and Persephone, Pallas to Athena, and Vesta to Hestia." That, at least, made her feel better. "But Elios is named after the Sun God, why is he not named after Morpheus?" Selene smiled. "There is a reason for everything, my dear, but I cannot tell you the answer to your question, you will see in time. Beware of Hera, she holds no good will toward you, and I suspect that my brother will eventually see you, but I must go now. If you need me, I will be here." And she was gone.  
  
The Underworld  
  
Hades turned to see Thanatos and Hypnos dragging the reluctant future Elios behind them. Thanatos struck him in the back of the knees. "You will bow to Lord Hades, or suffer the consequences." Hypnos commanded, and Elios went down on his knees. "Lord Hades, I beseech you, leave Lady Serenity alone, she is only sixteen!" He laughed maniacally and Elios' look of distraught helplessness furthered his laughter. "Leave her alone? Why do you think I brought her here in the first place? But wait, you're from the future, so tell me, what happens?" The young man snarled. "I'll never tell you, not after you threatened Serenity! All those years... and I just remembered everything." Clearly he had been cleverer than he thought. "I erased your memories hmm...?" At which point, he paled. "Yes, after you had me murdered. I can remember Serenity's grief, you coward! Look what you did to her, you monster!" Letting out a low whistle, Hades smiled a little and glanced over at Hypnos. "Your turn, I have yet a few more questions for him before I dispose of him." Elios struggled to his feet and landed a kick at the back of Hypnos' neck, rendering him unconscious. Thanatos, outraged by this turn of events, tightened his whip around Elios' arm, but Elios managed to plant his foot in Thanatos' face, and the whip disappeared. "Impressive, who taught you that?" Elios shrugged. "I needed to learn for my own protection, when I was kidnapped. The scouts taught me." The who? "Whom are you referring to?"  
  
"The daughters and granddaughters of the gods, sometimes even great granddaughters or later. The cataclysmic event that causes their rise has not happened yet, but rest assured that the Lunarian world will be destroyed. The princesses will be reincarnated, of course, and then there will be hell to pay." The implied pun seemed to unsettle Hades. "Well, priest, what say you to this?" An image of one of Hera's beasts appeared, and when the view moved out, he could see Serenity, crying, completely unaware of the monster, which sprung into action. "Maiden! Do something, please!" Hades shrugged. "I don't have to, Selene will take care of that." Elios watched as the Goddess of the Moon materialized near the now safe Serenity. Suddenly, a sharp pain ignited in the back of his head and pushed forward, blotting out his vision with white and then making him sink to the floor.  
  
Elios' Home  
  
Elios knew that Serenity had slipped out while the commotion in the kitchen was dealt with, he just didn't know where she'd gone. Something stronger than brotherly protection was governing him when it came to Serenity. "Elios, if you're so worried about her, then go after her." Athene told him gently. "I think I will... but how is it that I can feel like this when I have only known her a week?" His sister smiled. "It was fate, my brother, something tells me that you two were meant for each other." He could not be so easily swayed by his sister's romantic ideals. "Maybe Athene, maybe, but how can I be sure that she feels that way as well?" With a sigh, Athene motioned toward the window, and across the field, near a lake, Serenity sat on a rock, running her fingers through the pristine waters, and he felt himself smile. "Elios, I have to tell you, I don't think she is of this time, she's too... she seems to believe that she can do what she pleases while the women of this world are very aware of their place. She also has a beauty that is unmatched except for maybe by a goddess in this time. One of the gods must have brought her from the future, which shows that perhaps there is hope for equality between men and women." Not likely, or so he thought. "I shall go and fetch her in awhile, she should be safe for now."  
  
The Base of Mount Olympus  
  
Serenity let herself fall on her side on the rock and stared up at the moon. Somewhere up there were her parents and the scouts; completely unaware of the dangers they would face in half a century. Closing her eyes, she thought of Elios and tears once again flowed down her cheeks as she slid into a restless sleep. In her dreams, she saw the event of only an hour ago unfold in front of her. The curiosity, the surprise, the terror, the loss... all of it was there. Those two monsters had actually had the nerve to kiss her! And last of all was Elios being torn away from her, and she reached outward, sending off an enormous amount of energy at a leaf that was drifting off of a tree, and it became a liquid substance that dripped onto the rock right next to her fingers. She tossed over onto her side, and her tears rolled down into the liquid, causing it to come together and move in all different directions. Inside her dream, she remembered vividly the attack of the monster, and recoiled in fear, teetering dangerously close to the edge of her haven.   
  
The monster swiped at her, and she fell backward into the lake, still in her deep sleep. Then, her dream shattered into a million pieces, and she felt herself suffocating, but she could not wake up. "Maiden, wake up!" It was Elios' voice, and she looked around for him. "Help me." Serenity whispered, and saw the familiar white Pegasus that suddenly turned into Elios running toward her. "Wake up, before it is too late!" He said, suddenly going down on his knees and sliding the rest of the way over to her as she felt herself falling. "I can't." She managed, and worry became etched into his brow as he supported her. "He wouldn't... Hades, show yourself!" A dark figure appeared. "All in good time, she's too valuable to my plans, I won't let her die, yet." Elios sneered at the figure, and it disappeared. Then, he leaned over her and placed his mouth over her's as he plugged her nose, and suddenly, air filled her lungs and instinctively, she tilted her head over to the side, propping herself up on her elbows, and coughed up water while someone patted her on the back. Her eyes opened slowly, and she let herself fall to the ground as she gazed up into the amber depths that she knew so well. "Elios?" Serenity finally managed, and saw silver light refracting light onto his face. They both glanced over at the rock that she had fallen from, and there was a crystal sitting there, with gold, blue, pink, and silver swirling in its depths. Then, it began to glow brightly, and her body was enveloped in the same kind of unearthly light. When it was gone, she was in a dress similar to her princess garb, but with short, flower petal sleeves and transparent wings much like that of her mother's. Her hair was now to her knees, and she could feel the power of the new crystal within her. "Who are you?" Elios asked in shock, and she answered him truthfully. "I am Princess Serenity of the Moon, granddaughter of the goddess, Selene." He smiled softly. "That explains a lot." She also smiled just slightly, and pulled his mouth down to meet her's.  
  
The Underworld  
  
Elios woke with a headache and abruptly vomited. "Ugh, why do they always do that?" Thanatos complained, and pointed a finger at the mess, which disappeared. "You'll be happy to know that your 'maiden' is safe, and in somewhat higher spirits." Of course, he already knew that; no wonder he had been so attracted to her during his captivity, and yet again, no wonder the same was happening now during his youth. "I know, I can remember." 


End file.
